In this issue:

Greetings from MBA Director, Dr. Eugene SivadasI am pleased to present the 22 students who will be joining the alumni ranks by the end of summer 2014. Learn more about our soon to be graduates by reading their profiles below. We look forward to celebrating their accomplishments at the Milgard Hooding ceremony on Friday, June 13th.

This academic year has been exciting with the introduction of the MBA Association, their kickoff event at El Gaucho in September and their holiday season event at the Glass Museum have been great opportunities for students and alumni to connect. We anticipate great things from their event at Point Ruston on June 20th-with over 100 guests registered to attend it is sure to be a lively event.

If you know anyone interested in earning their MBA, please encourage them to apply. We will accept applications for Autumn 2014 until July 15th. The MBA program is working to introduce an alumni brand ambassador program. Through this program, we wish to partner with our alumni to spread the word about the program. More details will be forthcoming in a future newsletter.

The Milgard MBA presents the 22 students graduating between Autumn 2013, Winter, Spring, & Summer 2014. The Milgard School will hood MBA and MAcc graduates on Friday, June 13th. Download a PDF version of 2013-2014 Graduate Profiles here.

Adam Small received his MBA from the University of Washington Tacoma in June of 2010. His outstanding performance at UWT focused on change management and economics. While in the program, Adam was a Strategic Business Analyst for Simpson Tacoma Kraft Co. He started at Simpson in 2005 as a Customer Service Assistant, and has since then received numerous promotions that have brought him to his current position as Director of Finance and Assistant Treasurer.

Adam earned his Bachelors degree in biology from Dickinson College of Carlisle, Pennsylvania in 2003. He always knew he wanted to continue his education, and after a few years in the work world was encouraged by his boss to get his MBA. He knew that a more advanced degree would surely open up numerous doors since his boss was the only other person at the company with an education in business at that time, so he began looking into MBA programs in the area. Adam chose UWT because of its convenient location in relation to his home and work, as well as because of the very positive reputation the program held. Since graduation, Adam has been able to use what he learned at UWT in his current management position at Simpson. He also recently completed an 18-month leadership program that took him on an incredible two-week journey to Spain and Portugal.

Adam and his wife, also a UWT graduate, have been married for 8 years and enjoy raising their three-year-old daughter, 1-year-old son, and 10-year-old chocolate lab. The Small family loves to spend time in the outdoors, and as Adam puts it, “She and I have had so much fun starting and raising our family, and really try to maximize every smile and giggle since we know the kids are going to grow up way too fast.” Adam also loves to sing and play the guitar at local coffee shops and bars. However, his busy life of youngsters and work has not allowed him to perform as many gigs as he would like. Adam continues to grow as both a professional and as a dad, and is looking forward to seeing what his future holds.

MBA Faculty Profile: Dr. Fei Leng
Dr. Fei Leng, Associate Professor and Graduate Faculty of Finance joined the Milgard School of Business in September 2006 shortly after receiving his PhD in finance from the University of Tennessee. Dr. Leng’s interest in the University of Washington Tacoma peaked when he was on campus for his interview where he learned UWT was transitioning from a 2-year to 4-year university knowing this indicated growth and opportunities for innovation he recalls, “I told myself, I don’t want to miss the bus.” Dr. Leng was also attracted to the supportive atmosphere of the Milgard School of Business, he sensed that choosing UWT he would find helpful colleagues, a dean supportive of teaching innovations and research, and students who were mature, hardworking and respectful. The final piece driving his decision to pursue a career at UWT was “the irresistible beauty of Mount Rainier and the Pacific Northwest summer.”

A curious nature and the drive to gain an understanding drove Dr. Leng to academia. As a child he was fascinated with the physical world and wanted to pursue a career as a physicist but he fell in love with economics the first time he was introduced. Interested in human behavior under economic motives and the market mechanism, academia provides the resources and freedom to purse greater understandings. Dr. Leng’s research focuses on corporate bonds and how accounting frauds affect the corporate bond market and an issuing firms borrowing costs. Currently he is working on “research that finds insurance companies bond trading behavior causes the demand-supply imbalance on corporate bond market and results in mispricing in short-term corporate bonds.”

Dr. Leng’s advice for MBA candidates and current students is to do a serious cost-benefit analysis. Pursuing the MBA is a significant investment of time, effort, and money. Once you decide to apply for the program, make your application as strong as possible, spending time preparing for the GMAT and carefully crafting your admission essays. Dr. Leng describes, “MBA student experience is like a gold mine you may dig from for only two years. Intellectual progress, professional skills, peer interactions, alumni connections, mentor program, etc., these are assets you may acquire during MBA education. So, be creative and proactive, and dig out as many gold nuggets as you can in these two years.”[top]

MBA Assocation Event on Point Ruston-June 20th
The MBA program is one of the sponsors of the MBA Association event on June 20th. We look forward to celebrating with you. The MBA Association is expecting 115 attendees and has closed registration for this event.
The MBA Association has a new facebook page, please "like" them to stay up to date with information from the group and information about events.